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Ecclesiastes 4 :: New International Version (NIV)

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Oppression, Toil, Friendlessness

Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:1 - Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed— and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors— and they have no comforter.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:2 - And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:3 - But better than both is the one who has never been born, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:4 - And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:5 - Fools fold their hands and ruin themselves.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:6 - Better one handful with tranquillity than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:7 - Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:8 - There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless— a miserable business!
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:9 - Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:10 - If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:11 - Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:12 - Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Advancement Is Meaningless

Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:13 - Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to heed a warning.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:14 - The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:15 - I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor.
Unchecked Copy BoxEcc 4:16 - There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
NIV

THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV®
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by Permission of Biblica, Inc.® All rights reserved worldwide.


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For more information on this translation, see the NIV Preface.

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